New Testament Exam 2 (Cedarville University, Dr. Couser)

Which books relate to Paul's concern for the church to embrace God's desire to heal the relationships between Jew and Gentiles (i.e. all people) as a central aspect of his redemptive plan?

Romans, Galatians, Ephesians/1 Thess

Would Paul be happy with homogenous churches?

No, Because Paul's encourages diversity

What do we mean when we say Paul is Theocentric?

Paul's Theology has its center point in Christ

What were the benefits of Roman citizenship?

Exempt from Military Duty, Right to Roman Trial, Right of Appeal, Exempt from Flogging

What was the primary influence that shaped Paul, Judaism or Greco-Roman world, and how?

Although Paul grew up in the Greco-Roman world, he was shaped by his Jewish heritage and teaching... Paul had all of the right credentials

He was raised in a strong Jewish home-Torah, circumcised, tribe of Benjamin

Trained by and became a Pharisee

No holds barred commitment-used to kill Christians

How do we explain the relationship between Paul and Jesus?

Direct encounter with risen Christ

Commissioned as Apostle to the Gentiles-by God's grace has to take Gentiles as they are apart from all Jewish customs

Paul and Jesus-Paul agrees with Jesus, but he writes to extend on what Jesus has already taught (Conceptual Indebtedness & Revelatory Extension)

What is the basic structure of a letter in the first century and what did Paul do that was unique?

Introductory, Body, Conclusion. He added Introductory Thanksgiving

What does Paul do in his Introductory Thanksgiving sections?

Introduces themes: already/not yet tension

Teaches: "I thank my God..." (and you should so pray as well)

Anticipates exhortation: "gifts"

Be able to recognize and explain Paul's theological destinctives.

THEOCENTRIC: center-point in Christ

Already/Not yet tension: Christian is being saved and will be saved

Interpenetration of theology and ethics: transformation not modification

The church: balance corporate and personal spirituality and witness

What are the three foci of Paul's letter to the Romans and what was going on with regard to each of them? What are the purposes of Romans with respect to these three foci?

1.) Roman Christians-Paul wants the Roman church to give him money, he wants to edify them, reconcile Jewish and Gentile believers and gain them for a base of support 2.) Jerusalem Church-praying that they will take the gift of money from the Gentile church 3.) Personal Ministry-Paul requests prayer, prepares Roman church for his visit and to edify

What is important about the history of the church in Rome for our understanding of Romans?

Paul did not establish the Roman Church. The Jews were just coming back because of the Claudian Expulsion.

What is the theme and key verse for the book? How does the key verse relate to the structure of the book?

"The Just by Faith Shall Live" 1:16-17

What is Paul doing in chps 9-11 where he breaks into the book's flow of thought before returning to the new life in Christ in practice in chps. 12-16?

9-11-Paul says the Jews have always had a chance to chose how they will respond to God. Though they reject God's offer, this does not mean that God's promises have failed. His word cannot fail because it depends on God alone not on what the Jews choose to do with it. God is faithful. 12-16-The new life in practice includes believer's community life, believer in general, believer and the state, believer and (love) debt, believer and Christs coming, strong and weak believers in community.

How is it that God is on trial in Romans?

God is on trial. Paul defends God's faithfulness and says it's not God who has been unfaithful but the Jews who are unfaithful. They would know if they read their Old Testament. The Jews are constantly scrutinizing whether what Paul says about him is true and they are deciding if they want to follow Christ

What do we know about life in Corinth?

To Corinthianize meant to practice sexual immorality

Aphrodite: religious prostitution

Cosmopolitan: chief city of Greece

What are the types of crises the church is facing?

Spiritually Immature, Fractured into Cliques, Abusing the Lord's Table, Notorious Immorality Internally Litigious, Marriage Problems, Cultural Accommodation, Gifts, Resurrection

What is the central tenant of the false views being promulgated in the church? How does this theological aberration relate to the behavior of the people? Does this theological aberration show up in another community later on in Paul's writings?

A. Internal: Immature leaders

B. Source of problems: immaturity and theological views

C. Over-realized Eschatology:

Confused Romans 6 with 1 Cor. 15:20:

1. Indifference to creation and God's functional design for life in the created world

2. Attempt to live as if the future resurrection, with its completion of salvation, had been fully realized

Result:

1. Physical/Social is irrelevant: .are fitting for me"

2. Antinomian: "all things

3. Arrogance

D. Antidote: correct understanding of resurrection and bringing that to bear on the various related issues

It shows up again in 1 Timothy and 1 & Thessalonians.

Who is the weaker brother and how does he differ from the professional weaker brother?

The weaker brother is one who looks up to another believer such that the expression of their Christianity is materially influenced by the life of that other believer. They are not someone who constrains the freedom of another from the position of spiritual superiority.

Th professional weaker brother is someone who constrains the freedom of another from the position of spiritual superiority. He/she uses the language of the weaker brother to force their preferences on other believers

What does the conscience do? How does it relate to Paul's teaching on the weaker brother?

It connects beliefs/values and choices: prospective & retrospective.

It demands and allows inner-integrity

To "destroy" someone is to encourage them to ignore their conscience

How does Paul's emphasis on redeemed, soul and body, relate to the bad theology at Corinth? How does the phrase food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both, relate to the issues in 1 Cor 6? How is it that sexual sin is somehow uniquely "against the body"?

Because they believed the body was of this world. Because the body was bad they believed marriage, sex, and things involving the body were bad. Sexual sin is sinning against the soul in addition to the body.

What had happened since 1 Cor. had been read?

.Paul had visited Corinth-"painful visit"

Paul's previous letter had had limited impact

"Super Apostles" had arisen and now plagued the church

the integrity of Paul's ministry is now questioned

Corinthian church has ceased giving to Paul's Jerusalem collection

What is the relationship between the Super Apostles and 1st Cent. Rhetors? How did this all come into play in the attitudes of the Corinthians toward Paul?

They based the qualification of an apostle on how well they could communicate and make the listener feel. They had a different Gospel. Aesthetics shouldn't be elevated over content.

What had Paul done that the Corinthians were pointing to as an indication of his character?

The fact that he said he was coming to visit but was kept from visiting

For Paul what is the relationship between ministry and integrity? Relate this to the first two major sections in Corinthians.

They are intertwined: Your integrity is the currency of your ministry, which is why he spends the first two major sections defending his integrity.

How does the theme address the problems at Corinth? What is Paul trying to re-configure in the Corinthians?

Theme: Seeing with the Father's Eyes. Paul wants them to look at things through the eyes of the Gospel. He is trying to get them to see through the eyes of Jesus and then they will reject the false gospel and the super apostles who were not qualified. Look for the things unseen

What is this paradox of strength in weakness and how does it relate to Paul and the Super Apostles?

The super Apostles boasted in their own strength, but Paul, being weak, boasted in the power of Christ through him.

Who is oppressing the churches in Galatia and what is the false gospel they are spreading?

Judaizers - Jewish Christians, they were saying the Gentiles have fallen from grace because it is Jesus plus other religious rules. They added conditions to the gospel, to be a Christians you must be a Jew and recognize the Jewish customs (circumcision etc.).

What is the effect on the churches in Galatia?

It lead to doing versus believing, Jew/Gentile divisions, Attacks on/Distrust of Paul, Legalism.

What is the key verse that relates to the theme? Why does Paul make this emphasis?

Theme: Freedom and Unity in Christ, 2:20-21. Because if righteousness were through the law then Christ died for no purpose.

What happens to Jewish practices, e.g. circumcision, when the gospel is understood aright?

They are rendered meaningless.

1. No hierarchy in salvation-the ground is level at the foot of the cross

2. Free to Love

3. Flesh vs Spirit

What in Acts 19 is especially significant for understanding Ephesians?

Acts 19 speaks of the sons of Sceva who tried to use Jesus' name as just another power to master evil spirits. They were unsuccessful. .... Is it written to the church at Ephesus or to the Asian churches. Church at Ephesus because they lack knowledge about God...This passage says that Paul did extraordinary things in Ephesus

People were coming to Christ but were still very polytheistic and held on to their different gods as well as the True God.

What about the 1st cent. understanding of gods and spiritual forces makes sense of Paul's stress on God's sovereignty and their need to know just who this God is that they have come to know in Christ?

First Century understanding of gods was that you used and manipulated them to get what you wanted, be it protection, love, etc. Paul wanted to emphasize that there is only one God and he wants them to get to know him.

Ephesians is a prison epistle, what imprisonment is Paul writing from?

He is writing from house arrest in Rome

Ephesians has two significant prayers. What did we suggest about Paul's prayers? Are they more emergency medicine model or the preventative medicine model? And, what does that mean?

Paul wants them to understand that God is all powerful and he is the name of every name so they do not have to be afraid of other names. Paul was trying to re-enchant their world with God's power. Preventative medicine.

The plan of God laid out in Ephesians has individual, corporate and cosmic dimensions. He lays out this all-encompassing plan to re-situate the Ephesians believers so that they can see God for who He is and themselves for who they are.

TRUE

To be armed with the armor of Eph 6 is to do what? How would you explain it?

To be on the offense, the best defense is the best offense. We shouldn't try to bind the evil one but to prepare ourselves to be impervious to the evil one.

-Inform Ephesians of God's saving purposes

-Expand their self-centered horizons

-Encourage and arm the believers

Why does Paul refer to Christians as citizens of heaven? What about the background of the Philippians explains his use of the idea of citizenship?

Because they lived in a Roman colony and were proud of their Roman citizenship. It was on the prosperous trade route: Via Egnatia and was pretty much all Gentile in make up because there were no Synagogues and 10 men were required to construct a Synagogue. First converts were women. Lydia's Baptism.

What is the main problem at Philippi?

Paul is in prison, but the people are not trying to help him out. Instead they are trying to take over his spot and take his place and get the upper hand while he is in jail-friendly fire.

There was disunity between Euodia and Syntyche and people were starting to take sides so the Gospel was begging for attention.

How does the portrait of Christ in Phil 2 address the problem at Philippi?

Paul teaches them that humility is the most important and that they should love others by motivating them to love Christ more.

How does the principle, whatsoever is pure, lovely, ..... think on these things, address the problem at Philippi?

They were only focused on the bad in people. They needed to be reminded of the good they saw before in the people they currently could only be displeased with.

To whom is the book of Philemon addressed? Why is that significant?

To Philemon, Apphia, and Archippus (soldier) and the church in philemon's house. [sig because it deals with philemon's slave but was read to all... underlying message for everyone.]

How did Onesimus come to be with Paul and why would he do that as a slave?

Because Philemon was angry at him and Onesimus would flee to the higher power. He fled his master, then became a Christian, and fled to Rome to find Paul, feeling convicted that he should go back to his master.

What are the things that Paul asks Philemon and the addressees of the letter to do that is so startling with regard to Onesimus?

Paul calls Onesimus his child and tells the church to treat onesimus as they would treat Paul, they should serve him and give him the place of honor.

What is the message of Philemon?

Letting the love of God in Christ penetrate your relationships.

What do we mean by syncretism with regard to Colossians? What was the heresy that had the effect of diminishing Christ?

Colossians wanted to intermix their pagan religions with that of the Christian doctrine. The heresy was that it was Christ plus something else.

What is the theme of Colossians?

The Supremacy of Christ 1:15-23

What do we need to know about the background of the book from the book of Acts?

That the church is largely Gentile, & were facing Jewish opposition (Paul needs to build up his reputation again)

Why does Paul defend himself?

Because he only had a brief ministry in Thess before he was run out of town so he had little time for extended instructions and they thought he was a person who did ministry but then took off when the heat started.

What are the marks of genuine ministry that arise for 1 Thess chps. 1-3? Why does he wait until chp 4 to start exhorting them to do something?

He labored to provide for himself and he told them things that the didn't want to hear but need to hear. He waited until chapter 4 because he had to establish his integrity and tell them why he was run out of town and why he did not come to them.

To be a people of hope is...

to let the reality of the future shape the present, giving strength and direction for the present.

What caused the problem in 2 Thess? What does this say about the church and pseudepigraphy?

They were concerned that the text was not of Paul. This means the church did not accept pseudipigraphy as doctrinal.

Would the early church think it acceptable to convey truth through it?

No

What is the problem and how does Paul address the problem?

The problem is over-realized eschatology so they were wavering and had become disengaged from life.

Why are there idle people?

Because they believe they are living after the return of Christ, and therefore need not yearn or work any harder during said times

Why does Paul write to Timothy?

Because the false teachers in the church were leading others astray and into apostasy and Timothy was to combat them so Paul writes to encourage and remind Timothy of his mission, for him to stay faithful.

Why is Timothy not timid Timothy?

Because Timothy was sent into an absolute hornets nest of problems with church leadership and Paul needed a trusted conduit through which to confront these case teachers.

Who is the householder/despot, who is the house, and what are the house rules?

False teachers, Church, and the house rules were false ones. Over-realized eschatology is believing they are living in the times of the resurrection with their salvation complete so they required made up rules for how resurrected people should live, saying the body was evil.

What is over-realized eschatology and how did it affect the church?

Thinking you have reached the complete form of salvation... caused the church to look down on earthly things (marriage, sex, etc.) and hurt their fellow man by doing do.

How does Paul respond to this problem?

Shows them that they have not yet reached the stage of completion

Why does Paul go back to creation to re-orient the household?

Because since they are living in the in-between times they are still under the same rules and structure that God designed at creation.

What is it that is so reliable in 2 Tim?

God's word

Is the imprisonment in 2 Tim the same as that in the "Prison Epistles"?

No, because here Paul is about to die for his faith because he is imprisoned in Rome but not under house arrest his time.

In Titus, how does Paul designate the Christians and what is its significance?

Paul designates them as the elect and says that not because they deserve it but because God calls them and He chooses those who he wants. It is significant because it means that the Cretans should live as God's elect.

How does the situation of Titus differ from that of 1 Tim?

In the situation for 1 Timothy the church in Ephesus had church leaders and elders but they were not wisely chosen by Godly standards. The situation of Titus differs though because Titus is dealing with a fledging church and that doesn't have any established leaders.